Dog shot, injured by UPD officer

An officer investigating an alleged marijuana grow in Ukiah Saturday shot and injured a dog, according to the Ukiah Police Department.

UPD Capt. Justin Wyatt said an officer responded to the 200 block of South Street at 8:15 p.m. Aug. 24 to follow up on a reported outdoor marijuana grow near St. Mary of the Angels Catholic School on South Dora Street.

The location contains multiple structures, and Wyatt said while the officer was trying to determine who was responsible for the reported grow, a dog ran outside.

"A dog exited a doorway and charged at the officer," Wyatt said, adding that no officers had entered any structures on the property and the doorway the dog came from had been left open.

According to the officer, the door the dog exited from was partially hidden and the officer did not see it until he rounded a corner and saw the dog, described as a shepherd mix, running out.

"The officer told me, Of course I scared the dog, and he scared me,'" Wyatt said, adding that since the officer had prior contact with the owner he thought he knew the dog's name and called to it and retreated, trying to calm it down, but the dog continued to charge at him and the officer believed he was going to get attacked and bit.

The officer shot the dog once, injuring it, and the dog ran back into the house. Wyatt said it was only then that the officer entered the house to look for the dog but could not find it.

"The officer immediately called the on-call vet to be on standby and put quite a bit of effort into trying to find the dog and the owner," Wyatt said, adding that the officer went to several different places where he thought the owner might be, telling some of his friends that he wasn't in trouble but to have him call the UPD.

Once the owner did come home and call the UPD, Wyatt said the officer returned to talk to him because he felt it was "very important that I tell him myself that this happened."

According to the officer, the owner was upset, but said he understood and declined the officer's offer to continue looking for the dog.

The owner of the dog, Robert "Erick" Fackrell, said he wasn't home and his dog, a shepherd mix named Mo, was in his bedroom, which is separate from the house, and he always leaves the door open to allow the dog to go outside.

Fackrell said when he got home his bedroom "looked like a murder scene," and he found the dog hiding in a culvert three hours after being told by the officer that the animal had been shot in the chest and likely had died.

"We followed the blood trail," he said, explaining that his roommate crawled deep into the narrow culvert to retrieve the injured dog. Fackrell first took the dog to Santa Rosa for care but was denied service due to lack of funds, then took the dog home -- he thought to die.

The dog survived the night, and the next day Fackrell took him to Dr. Barbara Mack in Willits, whom he credits with keeping the dog alive.

"My dog was doing his job," he said, explaining on Monday that Mo was scheduled for reconstructive surgery that day and was expected to recover, though it is possible he might have nerve damage and lose the use of his leg.

"This situation had nothing to do with me or my dog," he said, describing his dog as "his son" that he rescued as a puppy and adding that he wished the officer had tried to use a more humane defense on the dog, such as pepper spray, first before shooting him. "Anyone who knows my dog knows he is not aggressive."

"The officer has dogs of his own and did not want to shoot the dog, but he didn't feel like he had a choice," Wyatt said. "He still feels bad."

Wyatt said the marijuana plants at the residence had apparently been removed prior to the officer's arrival, and no further action is planned by his department regarding the grow.

Fackrell said the estimate so far for Mo's medical care is $5,000, and anyone wishing to help can call him at 707-472-1543.